How Did William Boss Tweed Corrupt

Corruption was rampant in the late 1800’s. William Boss Tweed was one of if not the most corrupt man in US history. Tweed ran Tammany Hall which was a democratic political machine which was organized to win elections through a network of precinct captains and would gain support and power by taking care of the poor specifically the immigrants by giving them jobs and loans and by bribing the politician’s as well. Tweed would overcharge for city services and take bribes from companies looking to do city jobs. The city court built by Tweed was originally going to cost three hundred and fifty thousand, but ended up costing upwards of thirteen million after Tweed overcharged substantial amounts for essentials like chairs and shades to keep a large cut of it. Thomas Nast was instrumental in putting Nast behind bars. Nast was a political cartoonist who made many key cartoons which made a big impression on new Yorkers, lots of them who …show more content…
They called the senate the millionaires club. Special interest group would offer outright bribes to politicians. People would go into politics as a business. Business and politics worked closely together. Congress would pass any law to benefit their donors so long as there was a profit in it for them. Most government employees were a product of the spoiler system in which family and friends of the politician would receive cabinet jobs after a victory for their loyalty and payments. For the employees to have “job insurance” they would need to make mandatory campaign contributions to the politician. President James Garfield was the last president to use the spoils system. Garfield was assassinated by a radical republican Charles Guiteau. Guiteau assumed he would get a job due to his speaking and writing in support of Garfield but when he was constantly denied he shot Garfield. He assumed that since Garfield was a moderate republican that is why he didn’t get the job. This created the Pendleton Act of